The Cuban countryside comes alive in the work of Orlando Almanza

Almost every dayOrlando Almanza takes a break from painting, grabs a chai, and wanders through his neighborhood art supply store. The abundance of paint, brushes and canvas still thrills him, two years after moving to Portland from Havana, Cuba. “It may be hard for people to understand,” he says, “but where I come from there is none of this stuff!”

Almanza was born in Amancio Rodriguez Las Tunas, a small rural town in the eastern part of Cuba, nearly 400 miles from Havana. Growing up, “there was no TV, no radio, no cell phones,” so Almanza spent his time swimming in the river and sitting by his grandfather’s side, listening to elaborate Cuban myths and stories.

When he moved to Havana for art school in 2009, he tried to leave his rural past behind and blend into the urban art scene. His professors showed him the work of the great European masters, “and as a young student, you want to be like them, you want to copy them.” But he soon realized that wasn’t his path. Those European masters had “already told their story.” Almanza had his own important story to tell.

Today, his large, colorful paintings reveal characters and scenes from his childhood in a wildly expressive style. Fish fly through the air and giant flowers burst from the horizon. “We’ve kind of lost the connection between nature and humans and the spiritual world.” Almanza’s work tries to repair that break.

Since moving to Portland, Almanza has found great success, with shows at galleries on both coasts. His current show at theFroelick Gallery, Gente de Rio, runs through Oct. 12, and he’ll be part of the Sitka Art Invitational at Oregon Contemporary starting Oct. 18.

Almanza hopes his paintings can bring viewers into his dreams, “into what’s inside my mind” and share those feelings like “beauty, pain, loss. The most beautiful experience is when you see a painting and randomly feel that pain or it makes you cry or laugh or wonder. That kind of experience moves me a lot.”

Orlando Almanza, Gente de Rio, at theFroelick Gallery, 714 NW Davis St, Portland, through Oct. 12.

The 30th Anniversary Sitka Art Invitational will be Oct.18-20 at Oregon Contemporary, 8371 N Interstate, Portland. The exhibition features work from over 100 artists, including Almanza. See Almanza in conversation, Oct. 19, 1-3 pm.